Not sure which “people” category we fell under 😀 but we had arrived. The Omaha beach area was really quite pretty and people were actually swimming and walking in the sand just like a normal beach. There were memorials though, and the Star-Spangled banner was playing as we arrived and several people were standing in attention with their hands over their hearts.
On our way to the American cemetary, we also found this memorial, which was really fascinating to me. I am a bit embarrassed but am not as well-versed in our American military history as I should be (now I know why Mr. Libby was always trying to teach us battle strategies in high school history class 🙂 ) and never really thought of what our solidiers had to overcome when trying to take over Omaha Beach. This was an enemy bunker that had to be neutralized so that our soldiers and aircraft could successfully take over the area……..
You can see the damage done to the bunker by US forces near the top and you can actually go inside and view the gun turret
We next ventured to the Normandy American Cemetary and Memorial. It doesn’t clearly state it anywhere but we wondered if this was US owned land. The grounds were meticulous and beautiful and there were signs everywhere asking visitors to be respectful of the American cemetary. We were taken aback by the sheer amount of European visitors at the memorial as well, and throughout the entire region, you could see American flags being flown next to French flags and many signs thanking US and Allied forces. You could either go straight to the cemetary itself, where over 9,000 US soldiers are buried, or you could go through a very well-done museum and welcome center first, which we did. Within the welcome center was a database where you could search those resting there by state they were from, name, military regiment, etc.. We searched our family names from Maine and found these 2 soldiers buried here………..
The museum was very informative and well-done, with short videos highlighting the details of the invasion and then exhibits of timelines, gear, and highlights of special heroes and feats.
I liked this little French boy who came dressed up for the outing and seemed very interested in everything he viewed
We then walked to the cemetary. The clouds threatened rain, but it held off long enough for us to pay our respects.
For myself, the visit definitely brought home the sacrifice of all those who secured our freedom and made me so fiercely proud of my husband, father-in-law, and family and friends who served and still serve in our US Armed Forces. Thank you!
There is no way to do this but abruptly switch gears…….so off to Bricquebec castle we go!! This castle was originally built in the 1100’s and was added on throughout the 1400’s, and has an illustrious history including being in posession of one of the Duke of Normandy, William Long-Sword’s, relatives, being used by the Knights Templars, being occupied by King Henry V of England, and being visited by Queen Victoria in 1857. It now functions as a hotel in the Logis chain in France, and has a gourmet restaurant on site. We would only be able to stay one night before boarding the ferry for England but were looking forward to exploring the castle grounds and relaxing. As you enter the castle grounds, you are treated to this view
The castle (also called Bricquebec Chateau) sits up on a hill and interestingly, the town just kind of grew up around it, and is a very pretty little French town
When you enter the castle/chateau grounds, you are basically inside the fortified walls and moat
and the main lodging section has 17 guest chambers, a tea room (we didn’t have the afternoon tea service but saw many who ordered it), a reception area, a bar, and a restaurant that only has 20 tables and if you are a guest, you get first dibs at reservations (which we did take advantage of). They had a menu offering a few a la carte items and a wonderful prix fixe menu, which is what we chose. Matthew ventured out and tried the fois gras (and enjoyed it), while I stuck with the prawns appetizer. I did have the most delicious duck for the main course though, although I did feel guilty when feeding the ducks later :). We both enjoyed the cheese course, and for dessert, we had a a fruit and sorbet plate and the BEST raspberry and chocolate tart EVER made. It was worth the whole trip, hehe. Since I always feel funny taking pics while people are eating, I didn’t take the camera in although I did get a picture of the empty restaurant the next morning/ It is called the “Knight’s Hall” and used to the castle’s great hall…….had a very cool feel to it!
I absolutely loved the entire experience and would highly recommend it to anyone. It was a great way to say a fond farewell to France! Oh, and we did get another baguette sighting…….this time a punk group of teenage boys were munching on a baguette 😛
On the morning of July 28th, we headed to Cherbourg, France to catch the ferry to Poole, UK. Our schedule was a little bit tighter than it should have been 😀 and when we arrived, they let us know they were holding the ferry for us and to drive down the pier and we would see the crew flagging us down. Matthew was speeding down the pier, and we see the ferry crew in fluorescent vests waving their arms. Focusing on them, led us to sail right past the French passport exit control point, and led the soldiers at the checkpoint to yell loudly and brandish machine guns. Matthew immediately stopped and backed up, apologizing profusely, and thankfully the French soldiers seemed to be pretty good-natured about it (I didn’t dare take a picture of them though 😉 ). They let us go without issue and we made the ferry in plenty of time. Just for the record, we were not the last ones on the ferry and arrived in Poole, UK safe and sound.
We felt relief in knowing we would be able to speak the language without problem, and did not anticipate the third degree we received at the UK border control. They actually asked for proof of our return plane tickets and evidence of when we would be exiting the country. Well, cheers to you too mate! Seriously though, we were talking with the US customs officer when we came back through DFW and told us about our experience entering the UK and he said that was pretty standard and they do the same with anyone visiting from the EU as well (made us feel slightly better :D). Matthew quickly accomodated to driving on the left side of the road, although I continued to find it disconcerting to see cars driving down the rights side, and seeing small children or people with their legs kicked up on the dash or snoozing, sitting on the passenger side (on the US driver’s side) continually gave us a giggle.
With our feet firmly on English soil, and after a long day of driving and traveling across the English Channel, we had a quiet night of rest and prepared to head to Hever castle and London on the next day. Cheers!
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